


Love Live! School Cannibidols

by pain



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project
Genre: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°), Cannibalism, Love Live!, Pain, School Idol Festival, Swag, Tragedy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-21
Updated: 2015-05-31
Packaged: 2018-03-25 01:31:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,776
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3791623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pain/pseuds/pain
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Shinomiya Akiru is just a lowly normal card, new to the idol world. She has her best friend Saeki Reine at her side, and an upperclassman named Nozomi-senpai helping her along the way. Life as a school idol is filled with fun adventures and many surprises. Akiru is dancing, singing and shining in the world of the idols. But, she soon finds out the truth of the idol world, and just how cruel it can be. Warning: This fan fiction becomes very bloody and gruesome later on. :)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. one

***  
I am floating.  
I close my eyes.  
I feel nothing. No,

I am nothing.

I am merely a drop of water in the ocean, merely a speck of dust in the rays of the sunlight. My existence is 

nothing.

Who am I? What am I doing? What is my purpose?  
I spin around and around in the box. Am I underwater?  
All around me is black, but then a single shred of light comes in from the sky.

a n d t h e n t h e b o x i a m i n o p e n s i t s e l f.

A hand reaches down. “From today on, you are Shinomiya Akiru. A normal smile card."

***  
Nozomi Tojo was very, very beautiful. She didn’t strike me as an Ultra Rare card. She wore the normal school uniform like a few other rare Muse members. She always had a deck of cards on her, and her long, silky hair flowed out behind her. Walking with her, I could catch a whiff of her perfume- and fuck, she smelled heavenly.

Just as I was preparing my nostrils for another sniff, she turned around. I jumped.

“Tojo-san, where is th-this..? Uh, w-what’s… happening?…”I stammered.

Her eyes were bright as hell. They were an unnatural emerald green, glinting in the school hallways.  
She grinned. Lord, was she gorgeous.

“I’m sorry. I forgot you were a new card, Akiru-chan! You’re very, very lucky,” she continued, leaning in, “that you’re the first Akiru Shinomiya smile card we’ve seen so far. The first,” she emphasized.

I blushed and smiled a nervous smile. “Y-yes, that’s g-great, Nozo-"

“Tojo,” she corrected. “Anyway, since you know nothing, let me tell you about Love Live School Idol Festival. We are all school idols. The school is closing down because the attendance rate is too low! So, we’ve come up with a way to solve it,” she said. “You belong to one out of three categories- smile cards, pure cards or cool cards. We all belong in different teams and sing different songs depending on our attributes. We give live shows to attract students and even compete in competitions. It’s all very fun. The school is practically heaven on earth."

I was surprised. Was she exaggerating? Heaven on earth? I giggled. “Yeah, sure, heaven on earth."

Her expression darkened. “Remember, Akiru-chan,” she whispered, “Muse is heaven on earth. You must never, ever forget that."

I nodded, confused. What was she talking about?

“Let’s go meet the rest of the club members."

We walked through a series of corridors. Left, right, straight, left. Classrooms were empty and the school was oddly quiet. The sun had begun to set, and the school was gradually getting colder. I shivered in my hoodie. Something didn’t feel right.  
We arrived in a gymnasium full of girls in costumes and uniforms. I saw other Ultra Rares like Nozomi, Super Rares, Rares and Normal cards. There were redheads, girls with black hair, brunettes and blondes scattered across the facility. I gaped at the number of idols there were. Surely not all of them got the chance to go up on stage. As I looked around, I suddenly saw a girl who looked like me. Exactly like me. Her eyes were empty and sullen, but they flickered with a glimmer of surprise when they met my eyes. She wore a blue and white cap on top of a sailor outfit, similar to other girls.  
I looked away and continued to follow Nozomi. Some of the idols looked tired and sad, and some of them looked like they probably felt like me- hopeful and excited. Every girl was so pretty, and they all wore fancy dresses. I heard some of them warming up on their scales, and watched as girls danced across the room, doing flips and tricks. It was astounding.

“ATTENTION! EVERBODY~!"  
Nozomi’s voice echoed in the gymnasium. She was suddenly standing in the middle of the stage of the gym. She was beside me a moment ago.  
“We have 20 new cards today- I mean ladies- the most we’ve ever received in a scouting!"  
Cheering came from the girls on the floor.  
“Please be nice to them and teach them the ropes! Smile team, let’s run through Bokura wa Ima no Naka de~!"

A girl with two brown buns with hair trailing down nudged me. I realized I was standing in the way of the smile team- a group of Super Rares and Rares.  
“Get out of the way, newbie."  
I followed her, embarrassed. The girl seemed to be wearing a green jacket on top of a golden hoodie and a dark green skirt. She held some chocolates.  
“What’s your name?” I asked tentatively.  
She glanced at me half-heartedly. “Saeki Reine. Pure. You?"  
“Shinomiya Akiru, desu! I-I’m a smile card. Nice to m-meet you!” I stuttered.  
Reine smirked at me. “You’re definitely new."  
What was that supposed to mean?  
“Come on, let’s watch,” she said, as she walked me over to the sidelines.

On the stage, nine girls were singing and dancing. I was surprised at the detail on their costumes. The girls looked amazing.  
Reine poked me. “You see that girl with the pony tails high on her head? That’s Nico Yazawa. The blonde is Eli Ayase. The…"  
She introduced all of the members to me. It was kind of weird seeing more than one Kotori, or more than one Nozomi on their team. Reine told me that there could be more than one card of an idol. Our school’s idol team was quite large.  
“Do you have any other questions?” she asked. I shook my head and concentrated on watching the girls on stage. Their track was happy and upbeat. “Bokura wa ima no…” they sang. I was shocked by the beauty of their harmony. It must have taken a lot of practice to get all the dance moves right and to learn their parts. I was swept away by the grace and elegance of the nine girls. I was in a trance. “…naka de…"

Suddenly, one of the girls fell over. She seemed to have tripped on her own feet.  
The track stopped playing. The whole gym fell into a hushed, tense silence.  
“Ow…” the girl on the floor said. She was a normal card. Lying on the floor, she tried to get back up, but her legs weren’t working. One of her ankles was splayed out in an unnatural manner. It was beginning to swell up.  
I gasped. “Reine-san, does that usually happen?"  
Even Reine seemed surprised. "I've never seen an idol get injured," she murmured.  
The idol was panicking, looking around with an odd, frightened look on her face.  
“N-Nico-senpai, can you help me? My leg…"

I then noticed Nico Yazawa, the leader of the smile team. She wore a doctor’s coat and was a Super Rare card. With adorable blue ribbons on her head, she fussed around the normal card, helping her stand up. Nico’s silky dark hair seemed to float in the air. She was enchanting in her lab coat.  
“Nico Nico Nii!~ Of course, Kasane-chan! Let me take you to the nurse’s office."  
With surprising strength coming from such a small girl, Nico carried Kasane to the nurse’s office on her own. People began to turn away from the scene as Nozomi organized a new smile team.

I then saw Nico turn her head and look at Nozomi. Silently, probably only for a millisecond, they exchanged looks.  
I could have sworn I had seen something under Nico’s bright, bubbly exterior.

***

"Hey, hey, hey, START:DASH!!” I sang.  
We were running through our repertoire for a small performance. Nozomi wanted me to be with the team, although I had just arrived. She seemed to favour me, even if I was just a lowly n card. By now, I had grasped the situation. N cards were worthless. Rares were alright, but the real deals were Super Rares and Ultra Rares. I pouted. It wasn’t my fault I wasn’t born in a higher rarity.  
“Akiru-Chan? You forgot to sing your solo,” Nico pointed out.  
I snapped back to reality. “I’m sorry! C-can I try again?"  
Nico smiled. “Of course-Nico!"  
We spent the whole afternoon rehearsing songs and learning dance moves. Five other n cards were with me. A girl named Tsurugi had introduced herself to me. She seemed friendly enough and helped me with my dance moves. But the whole time, my mind was somewhere else. I kept on flashing back to Nico-senpai - that look on her face when she glanced at Nozomi. Was she asking for approval of something? Had she just happened to look back and then went on her way? All of this was probably my imagination.  
Tired, I flopped onto my bed. It was my first day, and I had already gotten myself into something. My roommate, who happened to conveniently be Reine, flopped down beside me.  
“How was practice, Shino?"  
“It was okay,” I replied. Reine reminded me of a cat. Her eyes were sharp and she had quick reflexes. “A bit boring."  
She turned over. “I feel you. My first practice was difficult for me. I think I pissed off Tojo six times in one day,” she commented.  
I chuckled. “What?” she asked.  
“You’re funny."  
Reine smiled a small smile. “Nobody’s ever told me that before."

We got ready to sleep and turned off the lights. I still didn’t know much about myself, or the school, but I felt certain that I could count on Reine. From what I had seen, she was kind and funny, and maybe even a bit of a tsundere.

The lights went out. I went to sleep feeling hopeful. Maybe I was just a n card, and that I wouldn’t perform in as many live shows as the Rares or the Super Rares or the Ultra Rares. But, I thought that my first day wasn’t so bad.

***

I woke up in the middle of the night.  
I walked towards the washroom.  
I passed by the nurse’s office.  
What I saw was not an empty room. No, it was not the injured idol from today resting on a bed or anything one would expect.  
Instead, I saw Nico.  
She was biting and chewing off the flesh of the injured idol from today.


	2. two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After waking up in the middle of a night to witness an unpleasant surprise, Akiru finds it difficult to confront Reine about her issue. The world of the idols is slowly getting darker, and Reine has some secrets of her own she has not shared. Akiru finds out more about Reine's character, as they embark on an unforgettable journey in the School Idol Festival.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is bloody in the first few paragraphs! you have been warned desu  
> most of this chapter will be the dialogue between Akiru and Reine :) everything will be gOING DOWN next chapter

“Nico Nico No…” I whispered.  
The rancid smell of the idol’s dead body was enough to make me never want to eat meat again. Nico-senpai bent over the idol, a sly smile on her face as she continued eating. Her tongue gently trailed the collarbone of the idol. From my position, the girl’s torso seemed to have been brutally gorged out. Blood and entrails were everywhere on the bed. Blood-stained flowers littered the room. I watched as Nico-senpai played with her hair and twisted it around and around her finger. She was enjoying this. The idol looked like she had been struggling before, with a look of horror and shock frozen on her face, but she did not move. It was like watching a horror movie play out before me.  
Did Nozomi-senpai know about this? That Nico-senpai was a crazy, cannibalistic and probably rabid psychopath? I stood there, dumbfounded by the sight before my eyes.

Then, I heard Nico-senpai speak.

“What beautiful eyes you have, Kasane-chan. They’re a deep amber, like the sap of a maple tree in a forest. They’re so shiny…"  
She poked her fingers in the girl’s eye sockets and swirled them around and around.  
I was frozen. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t feel anything. I felt myself spinning into oblivion, falling into a black hole where I would never escape.

Was I next?

I could finally feel my legs after standing in the hallway for a few minutes. I slowly walked away from the sight and hoped I wouldn’t pee my pants. Behind me, I heard crunching, slurping and laughing. Honestly, what the fuck did I just witness?  
I just saw the adorable, kawaii desu Nico-senpai eating the flesh of another student. That was what I just witnessed. Was it murder? Was Nico-senpai high on drugs? Was that even real? It was possible I was just hallucinating or in a dream of my own. I crawled back into bed, but I couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t close my eyes, because every time, I did, I could see Nico-senpai, giggling and playing with the idol’s grisly corpse.

***

The next morning, I woke up tired around noon. I sat straight up. My alarm didn’t wake me up. Wasn’t there practice today? What day was it? Panicking, I jumped out of bed but hit my face against a wall. My forehead ached. My back hurt. If I missed my second practice, the others would surely judge me. I unsteadily walked around the bedroom, trying to get dressed.  
I then realized Reine was watching me the whole time.  
“REINE-SAN! H-Hi! What are y-you doing so late? Isn’t th-there practice?” I stammered.  
“Shinomiya, in case you haven’t noticed, it’s Saturday. There is no practice,” she responded.  
I face palmed. Right. Saturday. I suddenly felt a wave of embarrassment and relief at the same time. Although I horribly embarrassed myself in front of Reine, today I didn’t have to face Nico-senpai after the scarring ordeal I saw last night. I collapsed back into bed, extremely fatigued after a night with little sleep. Reine sat down on the edge of the bed.  
“Shino, is something bothering you?” She eyed me carefully. “You look like a ghost. Are you feeling alright?"  
I began tripping over my words. “N-nothing hap-pened, Rine-san. I-I mean, Reine-san! T-that’s your name. Of c-course it is! Hahaha,” I laughed nervously.  
I turned away from her and pretended to go back to sleep, but Reine stayed at the side of my bed.  
“Shinomiya, let me give you some advice. I haven’t known you for long, but never, ever, EVER pursue a career in acting. You suck at it."  
“I’m not lying, R-Reine-san. Aren’t y-you just i-imagining it?"  
I started sweating. Reine kept on talking. “Dude, don’t even get me started on how bad your stutter is. You can barely get through a sentence without scrambling your words. Not only are you pale as a sheet, but you have a million bags under your eyes too. What happened? Did you get your period?"  
I turned over and took a good look at Reine. She had a look of concern in her eyes, and never took her eyes off of me. She held my gaze unwaveringly. We sat staring at each other for a few moments.  
“Reine-san, when did you come to Muse?” I questioned.  
“More than a month ago. Not too long,” she answered.  
I paused for a minute and considered my options- not that I had many. I could either tell her and get rid of all the pressure and fear I felt, or keep it a secret and never talk about it again.

I decided it would be a wise choice to tell Reine. After all, what was the worst that could happen? Nico-senpai just needed mental help. Reine would surely agree.  
“Reine-san, please believe me on this one. Last night, something… sickening happened. Something abominable. Something…” I searched for the right word.  
Reine became a bit pale. “Go on, Shinomiya."  
“Well,” I resumed, “I kind of saw Nico-senpai eating out another idol last night."  
“Eating out? Shino, are you… sure you know what that means???” Reine-san began laughing. She laughed so hard she began crying, and laughed and cried so hard she couldn’t breathe. “I thought you wERE GOING TO SAY SOMethinG ELSE,” she howled. I blushed.  
“You know what I mean, Reine-san! This is SERIOUS. I saw Nico-senpai… literally eating the flesh of the injured idol from yesterday,” I choked out.

Immediately, Reine-san stopped laughing. Her face went pale, and the usual cunning smile on her face evaporated. “Did you just say eat? As in, literally eat?” Her tone was somber and deadpanned.  
I gulped. “Yes, Reine-san. It was… what, have you heard about it? Did you see it too?"  
Reine carried her head in her hands and bent over. “Oh no, oh no, oh no. This can’t be happening. No, it’s impossible. No, no, no. No. It is happening. It’s happening. It’s going to happen to all of us…” she muttered.  
“Reine-san? What’s wrong? I haven’t even described the details. It was appalling, but I just think Nico-senpai has some issues of her own. We need to tell Nozomi-senpai that she’s got a screw loose, and she can be sent to a mental hospital. We can-"  
Reine cut me off. “NO. Shinomiya, you don’t know ANYTHING."  
“You came here about a month ago, Reine-san. You surely can’t know that much more than I do,” I retorted.  
“Was Nico-senpai in the hospital room? Was the idol on a bed with flowers around her?"  
I nodded, surprised at how much she knew.  
Reine went back to brooding over whatever was bothering her. She seemed worried, paranoid and scared all at once. I noticed she had probably woken up a few hours ago, as her hair was not styled and she wore her pyjamas. She cradled her head in her hands.  
“She always told me that when you're depressed it always helps to lean your head on your arms,” she murmured. “Arms like to feel useful. She loved to quote Charlie Brown."  
I shuffled over and smoothed her hair. “Reine-san, please. What happened? It’s your turn to talk to me now."  
She had tears in her eyes. “I need to tell her that I’m sorry. I should never have doubted her. I should have listened. I should have stayed with her… I should have…” Reine trailed off. She leaned into my arms, and cried.  
I hugged her. “It’s okay. You did nothing wrong. It’s okay."  
She shook her head. “Shinomiya, you don’t… you don’t know. But there’s someone we need to meet. Someone who holds the key to all of this.” She glanced up from her spot with an upset look on her tear-stained face. She smiled a sad smile. “Hopefully, she’ll talk to me."  
“Who is it?"  
“We are going to see Shinomiya Akiru."


	3. three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akiru must now face another obstacle- Shinomiya Akiru. Although this may sound like she is only facing herself, Shinomiya Akiru is another card of a different attribute with a tragic story to tell. She has lost her humanity over and over again, and has sacrificed her sanity in the system of Muse. Saeki's past with this mysterious character is brought up, and once again Akiru must face the horrors of the idol world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> everything goes down in this chapter  
> turn up  
> i am sorry for the TG references  
> i'm trash  
> enjoy

Shinomiya Akiru turned out to be no one other than...

me.

Well, not exactly me. She was a normal cool attributed card. It felt strange to literally be talking to myself at first, but I soon got used to it. It was like having a twin. I felt an odd connection to her, and an indescribable but nostalgic feeling. Was this how the other cards felt when they saw… themselves? Their twins? 

After Reine had calmed down, we went to the west wing of the dormitories. The west wing was very quiet and dark. Some of the lights were broken, and some seemed to be literally be stolen. The hallway was eerie as we walked down it, flinching at every noise. Finally, we arrived at Akiru’s (my?) room. Reine took a deep breath and knocked.  
There was no answer.  
We tried knocking again, but there was still no answer.  
“Well, I guess we have to come back another ti-“ Reine started.  
I tried the doorknob.  
“Hey!” she protested, but I twisted the knob anyway. It was open. I tentatively entered the room and saw Akiru on the floor, seemingly sleeping. Her room was a mess. Papers were strewn everywhere. Clothes laid in a disorganized pile and personal belongings were scattered around the room. Her eyes flickered open at us.  
“What do you want?” Her tone was menacing and sharp. Although she was lying down and looked puny from our position, her eyes burned with hatred and caution that made her seem 10X bigger.  
Reine hid behind me, acting the opposite of her usual self. I grabbed her arm.  
“We’re just here to talk. Right, Reine-san?”  
“Of course.” Reine’s voice was tiny. She shuffled around uncomfortably. “I need to conference with you guys. I know I haven’t talked you to you in ages, Akiru-cha—"  
“Don’t call me that!” she hissed. “It’s Shinomiya. You don’t have the right to call me Akiru-chan.” Akiru sat up. She wore a bedtime variation of her usual idol uniform- a pink and blue sailor outfit.  
I was shocked at her sudden outburst. What could Reine have possibly done in the past to make her so bitter? Reine had only been here for around a month. However, time in the world of the school idols seemed to pass slowly. It was my second day and I felt like I aged a year.

“Shinomiya-san,” I began, “just give us a few minutes. I’m begging you. Reine is here to apologize, although you really don’t have to accept her apology. I also need you to tell me something about Nico-senpai.” My voice was clear and unshakable, albeit my trembling hands and my sweaty forehead.  
Akiru narrowed her eyes at me. “Get it over with. Y’all won’t leave me alone until I tell you whatever you want."  
I could only describe Akiru’s look as disgusted.  
“Shinomiya, I’m really fucking sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I should have told you this a long time ago. I should have believed you. And even though I know that none of my apologies will make a difference, I just need you to know that I regret everything,” Reine blurted out.  
Akiru started to quiver, a look of pure malice taking over her.  
“You’re sorry? Is that the best you can do?"  
Reine turned away.  
"Do you know what I have gone through alone? With nobody believing me? It’s just a fucking dream, they told me. It’s a phase. You’ll get through it. Who cares? Do you know,” she spat, “how many times I have hEARD THAT?"  
Reine started to cry. Akiru didn’t stop. “I HAVE EATEN MY SISTER!” she shrieked. “I HAVE EATEN SO MANY OF MY FRIENDS THAT I DON’T KNOW WHAT WATER WITHOUT BLOOD TASTES LIKE ANYMORE!” She burst into tears and began to sob violently. Reine stared onward, an empty, elegiac look creeping into her eyes.  
“Akiru,” I whispered. “Shinomiya Akiru."  
“I KILLED SOMEBODY WITH MY OWN HANDS!” she hurled. “I… I…"  
“AKIRU!” I cried. “I need you to tell me your story.” I got on my knees and laid my head on the floor. “Please."  
“It’s disgusting,” she seethed. “You really want to hear it, Akiru?"  
I nodded vigorously.  
"Fine. I’ll give it to you if you want to hear it that bad.” She got up and walked towards me.  
“W-what are you doing?” I asked. She got closer and closer to me. “No… stop…"  
“I’ll give it to you. I’ll shove it down your throat."  
Akiru smashed her forehead into mine. Everything went black.

***

Akiru’s memories flowed through my mind. They were a month long, probably about the same as Reine. At first, Akiru was just a new normal card. Even if she was cool attributed, you could have mistaken her bright, bubbly personality for a smile card. She was accepted into Muse with two other girls- Reine and… Akiru. Now, apparently, there were two Shinomiya Akiru cool attribute cards. How fun it would be to have a twin of the same attribute, I thought. Little did I know, that meant certain death.  
Akiru (the original cool card) was dancing and singing exceedingly well. She was scouted by the cool UR Umi Sonoda-senpai. Umi-senpai had decided to put Akiru in the care of Nico-senpai. Nico-senpai trained her so she became an exceptional singer, dancer and actor. Akiru was golden. She was enjoying life at Muse so much she overlooked all of her suspicions. This is heaven on earth, she must have thought.  
But, like my happiness at Muse, all good things must come to an end.  
Nico-senpai one day grabbed Akiru by the arm and dragged her to the kitchen. Akiru was confused and slightly scared.  
“Nico-chan, what are you doing?” She timidly inquired.  
Nico smiled a wide grin. “This will make you more beautiful and more unique than any other Akiru card. This process will make you complete."  
Akiru seemed worried, but she decided to trust her senpai.  
In the kitchen, the other Shinomiya Akiru card (cool attribute twin) laid on the table, strapped down with rope. She was stripped to her underclothing and was drugged asleep.  
Akiru rushed over to her. “Holy shit, Nico-senpai, what is all of this? What is the meaning of tying up my sister?"  
Nico began howling with laughter. She then threw an uppercut to Akiru’s jaw. In pain, Akiru fell backwards. Nico-senpai caught her and tied her to the table as well.  
“Take in every moment Akiru-chan! You will be doing this to several other cards when you’re done. You’ll love this.” Nico-senpai’s smile seemed oddly dark and mentally strange.  
Nico-senpai took a knife and began to cut Akiru’s twin into a bloody sight. The whole time, Akiru was screeching and wailing for help, and for Nico-senpai to stop. Nico demonstrated extraordinary skill with a knife, cutting up the girl as if she was just a vegetable.  
I knew what was going to happen next.  
Nico-senpai force fed Akiru the pieces of her sister, even as she threw up and cried and tried to kill herself. It was scarring to watch. I wasn’t sure if it was real.  
Slowly, stuffing the fingers and the folds of skin into her mouth, Nico-senpai had a taste of Akiru’s twin and finished off a leg. Blood was everywhere and Akiru was splayed out on the table, a bloody mess. Only, the blood on her clothing was not her blood.  
For the next two weeks, Akiru wandered through hell. She ate many more idols, all under the watchful eye of Nico-senpai. Many times, she tried to talk to Reine, but Reine only laughed at her and called her silly.  
Akiru’s eyes turned dull, with no light. Her only support was Nico-senpai, who always gave her a bright, nutty smile as they watched each other eat. Everything began to fall in a routine. Nothing- no, nobody- could change it.  
Nobody could save her.

***

I woke up in a daze. I was on Akiru’s bed, -the twin that had survived the massacre- and Reine and Akiru were quietly talking.  
“I’m sorry."  
“Saeki, you’ve told me that how many times now? About 1000-7 times? The past cannot be changed with apologies. You did what you did. I can’t forgive you, but I just feel like you’re here. For me. It’s better than being alone."  
“Fuck, man. I just didn’t think it was all real. Akiru-chan, I’m…"  
“Stop. Look, you’ve woken up Shinomiya."  
I turned away and pretended to be asleep so I could eavesdrop on their conversation, but it was useless. They noticed me.  
“Shinomiya, all these names and twins are confusing as heck. So, I’ve decided to call you Shinomiya and call Akiru-chan here Akiru-chan again."  
I was still confused, but it seemed like Reine chose to differentiate me (the smile card) by my last name and Akiru (the cool card) by her first name. We all agreed on it.  
By now, it was night time. How long had I been sleeping? From what I could see, Reine and Akiru had made up, and had probably talked for hours upon hours. The moon was up and it shone brilliantly among the hundreds of stars. Outside, the wind whispered through the trees and caused the ever so slight shaking of branches thick with flowers. An owl hooted in the silence that followed.  
“So,” Reine said, “what now?"  
I stared at the two girls in front of me and I once again weighed my options. What choices did we really have? We couldn’t really fight against the system or even try to persuade idols of higher rarity to help us. All of the higher level idols, without doubt, must have cannibalized at some point or another.  
An idea popped into my head.  
“I have an announcement to make,” I declared.  
Both of them turned to look at me.  
“Girls, we are starting a Counter Idol Coalition.”


	4. four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things are beginning to heat up in the idol club. Now having formed the Counter Idol Coalition, Shinomiya Akiru and her friends are planning big things for the system. However, unexpected newcomers arrive, and even more unpredicted people find their way to Akiru as she marches on. What will become of our protagonist with so many things happening, living a double life between Muse and the CIC?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the funny thing is that i was playing love live to procrastinate from writing my fanfic on love live  
> enjoy  
> it's extra long desu ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

The Counter Idol Coalition, or the CIC wasn't doing very well. To start, we definitely wouldn't- and couldn't- be approved by the school council. The school council had Honoka-senpai in charge, who was the founder of Muse. This meant no clubroom and no funding for our activities. We decided to hold our meetings in the dorm where Reine and I stayed, as the cool attribute dorm for normal cards was a mess. There were only three members of us.  
Reine turned to face me. “So, club president, what will be the first order of our coalition?"  
I played along with her. “Well, vice-president Saeki-san, I believe our first order will be to establish a goal. What is the goal of this alliance?"  
Akiru raised her hand in a poised manner. “I believe it would be to grow our association and find out every detail there is to know about idols. It will be a true idol research club,” she answered.  
I couldn’t help but burst out laughing at how serious Akiru was over this. She was adorable. After she told her story a few days ago, we talked over what we could do to stay together and give each other support. In such an unfair world, as normal cards, we had to stick together. We had to be there for each other.  
The whole group was laughing. We giggled in little fits, trying to be serious and then giving up several times. Akiru looked like she hadn’t smiled in years, and Reine was glancing over at her every few minutes. She probably wanted to make sure Akiru was enjoying herself after so much tragedy and death.  
“We need to be careful of who we choose,” I said after we calmed down. “We can’t choose the idols that are very, very loyal to the higher ranks, like Nico-Senpai or that annoying normal brat, Fukuhara Mikoto."  
Reine joined in. “Yeah, she’s a real pain in the ass. My ass. She tried to ram her flag up my ass the other day in practice. I was about to shove my box of chocolates up her nose when she called for Nozomi-senpai. ‘I was just dancing,’ she whined. ‘It was an accident, Reine-CHAN!’” she said with hatred. Her eyes burned with a violent flame.  
“How do we know she believes in cannibalism, and isn’t just a spoiled brat?” Akiru questioned.  
“Good point,” I said. “Well, she’s level 11. She would have to had cannibalized at least once."  
“Or she could have been drawn from a live show.” Akiru folded her arms.  
“Anyway,” I continued, “She’s definitely not on our list to recruit. What about Kadota Tsurugi? I’ve heard a lot of good things about her. She’s really nice to me in practice, and we were drawn together in the draw."  
Reine narrowed her cat-like eyes. Her eyeliner was on point. “I’m not really sure. She’s been really nice to Nico-senpai. I have a bad feeling about her."  
I shook my head. “No, no, she’s awesome! Are you sure? I just-"

We heard a knock on the door. “Hello? Is this the CIC?"  
My heart stopped for a minute. I looked around the dorm room. I didn’t have many belongings, but I had a baseball bat I could use to protect myself. What if Nico-senpai was at the door, here to kill all of us because of our club? And with other SRs and URs to back her up? What would Reine and Akiru do, having finally met halfway?  
However, it wasn’t a high ranking card here to expose our club (that just started two days ago). Instead, it was the cool attributed rare card, Hanayo Koizumi.  
We sat there in shock. After what felt like forever, Reine spoke up. “Hello, Hanayo-san. No this isn’t the CIC or whatever that’s called. Why would you think that? hA...” She smiled a nervous grin.  
Hanoi looked around and closed the door. “Firstly, you guys should really have your conversations with the door CLOSED. I could hear your conversation though a small crack. Be careful,” she warned. She closed the door gently and locked it. She pushed a heavy box and barricaded the door. Now, seeming more relieved, she slunk to the floor. Hanayo looked beyond her age.  
“We’re sorry, Hanayo-san. We don’t know what’s happening either with the idols. We just want to gather information in secret,” I admitted. Reine and Akiru exchanged bewildered looks.  
Her eyes shot up. “So, this is the Counter Idol Coalition. Perfect. I… I need your help!” she bursted out.  
“Whatever you do, don’t report us.” Akiru refolded her arms and narrowed her eyes. “Anyway, why would you think we could trust you? This is the first time I’ve talked to you. The first time any of us have come in contact with you."  
Hanayo looked away, looking overwhelmed. She had a blush on her face, and she acted timid. “I… I just want help. I can’t handle it like the other idols do.” She put her face in her hands and curled into a ball. “The idol world is a mess. It’s chaos. Everywhere I go, it’s all the same."  
I elbowed Reine and Akiru. What are we going to do? I mentally asked them. They shrugged their shoulders. You choose, they said.  
Hanayo didn’t seem like the kind of person who would lie. She was a trustworthy idol, and was known as the pure, innocent idol of Muse.  
I bent down to her level. “Hanayo-san, why would a privileged rare card like you need our help?"  
“None of the others will listen to me,” she replied with sadness. “They've witnessed so much bloodshed and murder that now they are numb. They feel nothing. But every time I'm forced to eat, I can’t do it. I get halfway through the body and I throw up. I’m the only one with this kind of view, aside from the new members. You girls.” Her voice faded into a whisper. She never looked us in the eye, too embarrassed and scared to do so.  
I looked at the others. Personally, I felt that we could trust Hanayo, even though we’d just met. She was just like us, alone, looking for someone who felt the same. Reine gave the tiniest nod, even though Akiru had her head burrowed deep in Reine’s shoulder.  
“Well.” I broke the silence. “The Counter Idol Coalition now has two new things.” Hanayo looked up hopefully. “A mission and another member.” She smiled gratefully.  
“BUT,” I objected, “if we are to let this member into the Coalition, she must help us succeed with our first mission. Our goal?"  
Everyone in the room seemed a bit confused.

“To overthrow the idol system."

I smiled, but in that moment, all of their faces turned pale.  
“You heard me. Our first order of movement is to inform the public. I would suggest a bit of graffiti art. You know, kind of… all over the west side of the school."  
The girls in front of me exchanged looks. I held my breath. I hoped I sounded confident, but not arrogant, or unrealistic.  
Reine raised her hand. “I concur. I would follow you anywhere, Shino,” she murmured with a light in her eyes.  
Akiru reluctantly followed. Hanayo nodded furiously, desperate to receive any kind of help.  
“Good. We meet her in three hours with spray paint,” I concluded, feeling triumphant.

***

Graffiti art was harder than it looked.  
For instance, the spray paint from the art room was bad quality and every five seconds, we needed to shake the bottle. Soon, our hands became tired and blistered. We were barely halfway through. On top of all of it, we had to keep quiet and not wake anyone else up.  
Reine and I stood on tall ladders reaching the third story of the school. We scouted around the school for 30 minutes, seeing if there was a large enough space to write our message. The wall was opposite the garden of the school, and beyond that was the city. The city seemed farther than ever that night. Just as far as the moon, I though sadly.  
Hanayo and Akiru were going from dorm to dorm, keeping an eye on us. They were our security. If anyone woke up and saw us, we had to climb into the nearest window. They had flashlights. Every 30 minutes, one green light meant all clear. If they shined a red light, that meant someone was awake. If they shined a yellow light, that meant an SR or a UR caught them. It wasn’t the best system, but Reine found a way to hack into the surveillance cameras of the school. Surprisingly, she was amazing at computer coding and hacking. I had never expected this from her. She deactivated the surveillance cameras without signalling the alarms, and erased her traces. She checked that every hallway was empty before starting the mission, and gave Hanayo and Akiru the footage to their phones. Her laptop was on the roof, streaming all the information we needed. Reine checked the screen every so often to make sure the plan was running smoothly.  
I was painting a girl crying over her friend, namely Mikoto crying over a friend. We wanted to frame Mikoto if we were ever suspected, as she was a complete tyrant.  
At 5 a.m., five hours after we started the plan, the sky was becoming lighter. Reine and I shined a green light, meaning we were done, and hurriedly scrambled off to our rooms. Hopefully, Hanayo and Akiru would return without anyone else noticing them. I stalked through the hallways, flinching at every shadow. Reine took a peek at our work every chance she got. We drew crying idols and blood, with a message above, saying, This world is wrong. -CIC. I was particularly proud of my calligraphy on the wall. We were doing well for our first mission.  
Reine collapsed on her bed and fell asleep when we got to our rooms. I felt dead-tired. I was pulling too many all nighters.  
In bed, I realized that I hadn’t disposed of my spray paint bottles. I was scared, sneaking into the hallway, careful not to wake up Reine. I made my way to the incinerator in the yard.  
Before I was at the stairs, I heard footsteps behind me. I slowly turned around.  
Nico-senpai stared straight at me, blood on her hands.

“Just what do you think you’re doing, Akiru-chan?"


	5. five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nico-senpai has caught Akiru red-handed. Backed into a corner, what will Akiru do? If she does survive this confrontation with Nico-senpai, what waits in store for her and the Counter Idol Coalition? More terrifying surprises are in store for Akiru- much worse than what has already been unraveled...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm so sorry for not updating ;-; i've been really busy with school work and crap, but i'm going to try to update more often ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)  
> here's an extra long chapter with really bad references   
> i regret nothing

“Just what do you think you’re doing, Akiru-chan?"  
I was frozen. I couldn't move. Once again, Nico-senpai had stopped me in my tracks. Only this time, she was staring straight at me.  
The spray paint bottles were under my shirt. I had the sense to put on my hoodie before I left, but Nico-senpai was staring straight at my stomach- where the cans were hidden.  
"I'm not feeling that well from something I ate. It's kind of like explosive diarrhea, but worse..." I hoped my nervousness would convince Nico-senpai that I was actually about to shit my pants. And I kind of was.  
Nico-senpai narrowed her eyes at me. “I’ll come with you, then."  
Fuck. I cursed inwardly. What was I going to do now? Nico-senpai walked closer to me, holding out her hand. “Let’s go, Akiru-chan. What are you waiting for?"  
“D-do you really need to come watch me shit?” I muttered.  
I began backing away slowly, panicking more and more by the second. “Yes. I’m worried about you...” I started to sweat.  
Suddenly, out of nowhere, Reine barged inbetween us. “NICO-SENPAI, THERE’S SOMETHING WEIRD ON THE WEST WALL!” She shrieked.  
Reine had a look of sheer terror and shock on her face. For a minute, I believed there was actually something on the west wall, but I realized this was all just to save me. Reine pulled Nico-senpai away to go look at the graffiti as I shuffled to the incinerator. I noticed that Reine had put some foundation under her eyes, making her seem like she had just gotten a good night’s rest. That’s smart. I should have done that.

***

The school was a mess by 6:00 a.m.   
When I returned from the yard, almost every idol was out of their rooms in our wing (west wing). They were wandering the halls bleary-eyed, and looking confused about the commotion. Was Reine really that loud? I sprinted to where we had painted the graffiti.   
There it was. A huge, scarlet mess with scribbly writing on the wall. Our drawings of fallen idols were frighteningly accurate, giving me shivers up my spine even though i had painted it. I had thought that my calligraphy was the best, but now I could see it was ugly and scribbly. At least it was still readable.  
A crowd of idols in their nightgowns were gathering around our art, murmuring. Whispers fell here and there, and looks of suspicion were on numerous faces. One of the girls fainted.  
“ATTENTION, GIRLS!”   
It was Nico-senpai shouting into a megaphone. She stood tall amidst the worried and tired idols. I admired her tenacity.  
“AS YOU CAN SEE, THIS IS AN ACT OF VANDALISM. I DON’T KNOW WHO WOULD DRAW SUCH… DISGUSTING PIECES OF FANTASY, BUT I WILL FIND YOU.* THE PERPETRATOR WILL BE PUNISHED AS THE COUNCIL SEES FIT. IGNORE THIS AND GO BACK TO YOUR ROOMS. THAT IS ALL."  
Nico-senpai took a few moments to gather herself before leaving. She flipped her hair and was followed by another SR or UR that looked like Maki from the back. The two laced their fingers together and disappeared in the hallways.  
I rolled my eyes. Pieces of fantasy? Very funny. I had almost burst out laughing at the irony, but I stopped myself in the nick of time. I searched the crowd for Reine. The group of idols outside lingered for a moment, and then dispersed. They all looked worried and afraid. For a moment, I felt guilty, but then I realized this was what we needed to oppose Muse. I headed over to Reine.  
“How did it go? Did Nicannibal-senpai suspect you?"  
She cocked her head. “You mean Nico? She’d kill you and eat you if she heard that.” I laughed.  
“Well, she didn’t question it. I told her I was going out for my usual morning run when I saw it. I smelled pretty bad. She didn’t want to be near me for another second."  
I nodded in approval. “Good. Let’s check up on Hanayo-chan and Akiru-chan."

We power-walked to the cool dorm, praying the whole way to Jesus-senpai that the two of them would be safe. We hadn’t heard from them for an hour. We passed the broken windows, the dirty floors and the (stolen?) empty candleholders. Walking at a brisk pace, my heart started to pound in my chest. I imagined all of the possibilities where Akiru and Hanayo would be dead. Hanayo was hanging upside down on the wall, cutlery digging into her body on their own will. Akiru was tied up just like her twin, with shadows surrounding her and overcoming her. They filled my mind and became dark. I could see my brain turning black as the darkness consumed me, eating me and cutting me into little pieces just like-  
“Shinomiya. Don’t lose sight of yourself, got it?"  
It was Reine. For a second I was seeing double, and then I was seeing Nozomi-senpai pulling me out of the box. Out of the darkness. I touched my forehead. I realized I was sweating and out of breath.  
“Yeah, I won’t,” I answered. “I promise."  
We arrived in front of their dorm rooms (they lived beside each other). I couldn’t hear anything from inside.  
I raised my hand slowly, bringing it close to the surface of the door. Lifting it back, I closed my eyes and   
Akiru opened the door. I jumped back in surprise. What was happening to me?  
She smiled gently when she saw my face. “We’re alright. Hanayo-chan is staying in my room for now."  
I breathed a sigh of relief. “No one saw you coming back?”  
Reine looked left and right. Up and down. “Come on. We can talk inside."  
I stepped into the room and was taken aback by the renovation. It was much cleaner than the last time we visited. Papers were organized and all of her clothes sat in neat piles on her shelf. The room smelled faintly of lavender flowers and it had been painted a light, peaceful violet. I could tell that she liked the color purple.  
“Give me a report,” I said when we were settled.  
Akiru saluted me. “Heichou, on the way back there were almost no disturbances. We talked to normal card Fukuhara Mikoto, but she was unaware that we were coming back from the mission. We stayed in our headquarters during the interruption outside."  
I sighed. “Heichou? What a weaboo." *  
“That’s good. We’re safe for now. All we need to do is wait,” Reine added.  
Hanayo was sleeping on Akiru’s bed, worn out from the mission. It was to be expected with the both of them running around for hours, paranoia consuming them. Akiru on the other hand didn’t seem too tired. She must have had a lot of practice staying awake at night. I shuddered at the thought.  
“Alright. This is good. We’re getting somewhere, guys. Let’s hope today’s practices are canceled so we can rest,” I chuckled. Reine and Akiru groaned.

***

It turned out that the club activities actually were stopped as the Council investigated the graffiti. I was sure that they couldn’t catch us, but a dark feeling rose in my gut. I stayed in bed, took a nap and went on Tumblr on my computer, surfing the site for my favourite anime ships.*   
Reine came into my room around noon with lunch.  
“Here. You’re probably starving."  
I looked at the tray she carried. There was a grilled cheese sandwich, a mini salad, a cup of fruit juice and an adorable slice of cake with complicated frosting on it.  
I motioned to the cake. “Did you spend your morning making that?"  
Reine grinned. “Yup. I’m pretty proud of it. I love baking,” she murmured. “Well, I used to, before Akiru went all… haywire.”   
The mood in the room was suddenly sombre.  
“Don’t feel down,” I said. “Hey- how about we go for a walk in the park tonight? Just you and me. It’ll be beautiful with the stars out and…"  
“That sounds nice. Enjoy lunch."  
Reine quickly walked out of the room before I could say anything else. I heaved a heavy sigh and went back into meme hell.

***

The night sky glimmered with the hint of a full moon. Above, I could see hundreds- no, thousands- of stars shining brightly. The school was distant from the city, and all of the lights were off that night. From our position in the grass, the school seemed very elegant, with graceful architecture and nature scattered everywhere. Nobody could suspect that in this school, there were murders every night and cases of cannibalism. I leaned my head onto Reine’s shoulder.  
“I’m tired,” I said quietly.  
“I know."  
The cool night breeze whispered through the trees and the flowers. A sigh ran through the nature around us. I sat there and listened to the music of the forest, with its faint rustlings and its quiet symphony of animals and plants.  
This world was so beautiful.  
“For every man who has ever lived, in this Universe there shines a star."  
Reine turned to me. “Really? Where did you hear that?"  
I got up. “What, you never read 2001: A Space Odyssey? I’m disappointed."  
She giggled. “I didn’t know you were a bookworm."  
“I’m a dedicated bookworm. Sadly, I can’t really remember when I read that book. I can’t even remember sitting down and reading a book at all in the time that I have been here."  
Reine’s eyes turned distant. “Maybe you read it in another life. Years ago."  
I leaned my head back onto her shoulder. “Maybe."  
“We should do some walking. See what’s on the campus, you know."  
We got up from our spot in the bushes and strolled around leisurely. I noticed that some of the graffiti was already cleaned off. We continued to walk around the school.  
Soon, we came to the edge of the school. After here, it was just nature and some of the city in the distance.  
“So, Reine-sa--"  
Her hand darted to my mouth. She pulled me behind a tree and slowly peeked out.   
“Don’t talk. Something’s… happening."  
In front of us was a hill. I couldn’t exactly see what Reine was talking about. Maybe she had finally gone crazy from sleep loss.  
And then, I heard it. Quiet chanting. I saw a blurry glimmer of light reflected on a puddle metres away. Reine’s eyes were good.  
We crawled closer to the hill and gradually made our way up. On the other side of the hill, the land sharply curved down and inward. The trees hid what was happening. Reine suddenly put her hands over my eyes.  
“What is it, Reine-san? Is this some sort of joke?"  
She sounded choked. “You don’t want to see it."  
My blood ran cold. I calmly drew her hands from my eyes. I looked down.  
Below us were a group of Rares, Super Rares and Ultra Rares chanting to a normal card tied to a stake. Under her was a small fire, and her feet were barely above the flames. She was covered in blood. To her left was a line of blindfolded normal cards. To her right was a table with blood splattered over it. On the table was a normal card. The normal card on the stake was being fed parts of the other girls over and over again until she was full levelled. She was then thrown into a cage with two other girls.  
The circle of high ranking cards were bowing down to a picture of Umi-senpai, in her pure attributed form.  
Nico was leading the ceremony.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * and i will kill you...  
> *I'M SORRY I HAD TO  
> *OOPS I DID IT AGAIN  
> i am trash


	6. six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After finding a terrifying ritual going on in the outskirts of their school, Akiru and Reine need to decide what to do after their exploration. With proof of the bloody ceremony, the girls conduct another meeting to decide what they will do. But what will be the consequences of their actions? There's something dark in store for Akiru and her friends- something far worse than what they planned...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i am trash!   
> i'm sorry this chapter was shorter than usual... and worse...  
> it will be extra long next time i promise  
> swag  
> i just realized i used so many "..." in this one oh

I wasn’t even sure what was happening anymore.  
Out of everything I had seen, this had to be the worst. I couldn’t even look at the scene below us without wanting to vomit. All of those cards, forced to be fed by the hands of their fellow classmates, I thought sadly.  
Reine started to walk down the hill, shaking. I followed after her.  
“Reine-san, wait! We c-can’t just leave them like this,” I whispered, panicked.  
“What do you think you can do? What can I do against that mass of URs and SRs?”  
Her words hit me like a slap in the face. “Well… we… we need evidence. This.. t-this is good material for the CIC,” I murmured.  
Reine’s eyes bulged out at me. “That’s what you’re thinking right now?"  
I averted my eyes. “Yes. that’s exactly what came to my mind."  
“Who are you?” she hissed.  
I took out my phone and snapped a couple of pictures. “The least we can do is to inform others about this… carnage…” I pointed out.  
“Do what you want. Just know that they must have been holding these ceremonies every single event for SRs. Leveling up normal cards in preparation to feed the event cards…"  
I felt hopeless. Reine felt more distant than ever after our conversation. The ceremony happening below continued on as we stumbled away. 

***

“The meeting has started,” I said sombrely.   
The Counter Idol Coalition was gathered once again in my room for our second meeting. Reine was sitting away from the group, typing furiously on her laptop in preparation for our new plan. Hanayo was oddly much more calm and collected than last time. Nothing fazed her, although everyone else in the room was tense and worried. Akiru had a frown on her face and was fiddling with her fingers. Her hair was messy.  
“I must warn you girls that this meeting may be one of our most… well, I would call it controversial and risky. Should we decide to carry out our plan, we will be spreading very, very, confidential information to the idol society. If two of us vote for it and two of us vote against, that means we will not carry out the mission,” I warned them.  
“Just get on with it, Shino,” Reine muttered from her seat.  
I glanced at her. Reine was stressing out, typing furiously on her laptop. Her hair was a mess from not sleeping well.  
“Last night, on Friday, Reine and I were going for a walk. A stroll at nighttime, just to relieve ourselves of the horror that is Love Live. Everything was so perfect- the night breeze, the stars and the trees… but… then we came across the limits of the school territory. And we-"  
Hanayo snapped her head. “You’re not allowed to go near the boundaries, Shinomiya-san."  
I flinched. Hanayo sounded like a different person. “I know. But we found something. Let me show you guys a picture."  
Akiru and Hanayo moved closer as I brought up the picture on my phone. The looks of shock and fear on their faces was enough to make me want to cancel the operation. Akiru made a squeak.  
“What’s happening in this picture, Shinomiya-san?” She asked.  
I took a deep breath. “The cards with high rarities, as you can see, are feeding the normal cards to normal cards. By force. The girl on the stake is one of the cards being fed the lower levelled ones. These normal cards, now full levelled, are then sacrificed to the SRs from events- the ones that are w-won every two weeks or so. N-nico-senpai was leading the ceremony."  
My voice trembled as I told them the truth. “And, the goal of our mission is to leak these photos. We n-need to cause an even greater uproar to the idols that don’t believe us. We need to set fire to this rebellion."  
Akiru exchanged looks with Hanayo. Undoubtedly, they were hesitating.  
“W-what if we’re caught?” Hanayo questioned. “After the hacking from yesterday with the graffiti, the council has tightened their security. They couldn’t believe that Reine-san had brought down the whole wall with her laptop alone.” Her voice showed a hint of pride.  
“If we’re caught,” Akiru continued, “that would mean a punishment worse than death. The more we do this, the harder it is to go back, Shinomiya."  
“Don’t you want to change the world?” I countered. My voice became louder. “This is the ONLY chance we have to show them. I don’t know what we can do after this. Just think of your dead-"  
“Shino.” Reine stared at me in disapproval.   
I hung my head. “I’m… sorry. I just can’t stop thinking of the girls who were sacrificed. They must have had friends. A family. A home. Their deaths cannot be in vain."  
Akiru shied away. “I don’t know about this."  
Hanayo suddenly raised her hand. “I’m in favour. I’ve changed my mind."  
“That was quick,” I remarked.  
“Akiru-chan, come on. Why are we even in this coalition anyway? I joined you guys a few days ago because I was tired of everything. Tired of feeding. Tired of the empty looks in my fellow idols’ eyes. It’s now or never,” Hanayo finished.  
“I hope this means three of us are for it. Reine-san is neutral about it. Akiru-chan?"  
Akiru pondered over the thought, with her chin resting on her hand. “Well, what’s the worst that could happen? It’s not like somebody’s going to kill themselves over a photo."  
“Three for. One neutral. Reine-san, are you ready?"  
Reine nodded. “Give me your phone. In one minute, I will be broadcasting this photo on every electronic in the area. For only two minutes, of course."  
I handed her my phone. Reine began fiddling with it for a few moments. She took off its case and attached a couple of wires.  
“The photo will be everywhere in three… two…"  
I held my breath.  
“ONE."

***

I sat in my room, all alone. My head hurt from what had happened today. Reine was out eating dinner with the others, while I stayed in our dorm. I couldn’t go for dinner after what had happened today.

FLASHBACK TO SIX HOURS AGO  
For a moment, nothing happened after Reine pushed a key on her laptop. Everything stood in a standstill. Nobody moved. No one said anything. It felt like time had stopped.  
Then we heard the screaming.  
Girls around the school were screaming at the photo being displayed on their devices. Reine captioned the photo as The Truth of the School Idols. I plugged my ears to block out the screeching, but I could still hear it in my head.   
“Reine-san, we-"  
Her eyebrows crossed. “No. We agreed on two minutes, no matter what. Now, help me hide all of this in the closet in case someone does check-ups on the rooms."  
We helped her equipment into a corner of the closet. Then we bolted out the door, looking to see what was happening outside.  
Again, many idols had gathered into the school yard. They were trying to turn off their phones and laptops, but it was no use. Nothing could beat Reine’s coding skills.   
When we arrived in the yard looking just as confused and scared as they were, we heard screaming from above. On the roof.  
One girl stood on the roof with a gun in her hand and death in her eyes. I recognized her as Tsurugi Kadota, the smile card who had helped me so many times in practice. My heart stopped. I started to quiver. My body was on fire.  
“I CAN’T DEAL WITH THIS ANYMORE!” She shrieked. “I CAN’T DEAL WITH THE EATING AT NIGHT AND LOSING MY FRIENDS!"  
Tears streamed down her cheeks. Her hair was disheveled. Her clothes were ragged, and she seemed extremely tired.  
“LET ME DIE A MARTYR! LONG LIVE THE COUNTER IDOL COALITION! BURN DOWN THIS HORRENDOUS SYSTEM!” She wailed as she pointed the gun to her head.  
“No...” I whispered. “KADOTA-CHAN! STOP!! YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU’RE-"  
I couldn’t finish my sentence before she shot herself. Everyone in the courtyard watched as she blew a hole in the side of her head. She fell forward and off the building. It dropped to the floor with a thud. Her body lay limp on the ground, not moving.  
Tsurugi Kadota, a beautiful, young idol, had committed suicide that day.

**Author's Note:**

> this fic will become very very gruesome and bloody. do not continue if you are sensitive to that. i will also update very rarely because i am weak. thank you for reading


End file.
